1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a hinge device for a door or shelf of a cabinet or appliance, and more particularly, to an improved hinge device which resists tipping of the cabinet or appliance when an excessive load is applied to the door or shelf which is horizontally and cantileverly disposed.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous horizontal hinge designs for doors and/or shelves are well-known in the art. The doors may be a door on a kitchen oven or some other appliance such as front loading washers and dryers, and the shelves may be part of a bookcase or desk which swing down pivotally to provide a horizontal surface and/or access into the bookcase or desk. In all instances, the door or shelf when opened is generally in a horizontal and a cantilever position. Other examples where this type of door or shelf when opened is used are in ice makers, stereo cabinets, and drop front file cabinets.
The present-day hinge devices are designed such that when an excessive load or an overload is placed on the opened door or shelf, the cabinet or bookcase or appliance tends to tip or fall forward. This creates a dangerous situation for the user which may result in serious injury to the user and/or may result in damage to the cabinet, bookcase, or appliance.
It has been known to employ in an oven of a kitchen stove a lever arm which is attached at one end to a counter-balance spring mounted in an oven and which travels over a roller, which, in turn, is attached to a hinge device mounted to the kitchen stove. The other end of the lever arm is received in a top slot of a channel slideably received in a sheath of the oven door.
It has been further known to employ a sheath in a door of an oven for receiving and securing a channel and hinge device.
An example of present-day hinge devices for an oven door is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,766 issuing on Jun. 25, 1991. This hinge device does not provide means for releasing the effect of the hinge device when an overload is placed on the opened door.
Therefore, in spite of the prior art devices, there remains a very real and substantial need for an improved hinge device for a door or shelf disposed in a generally horizontal, cantilever fashion, which is simple in construction and which prevents the cabinet, bookcase, or appliance from tipping or falling forward when an overload is placed on the cantilever end.